Catch



Feb. 254, 1941. Q W ALDEEN 2,233,278

I CATCH Filed Oct. 14, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 41 *l* J1 26 35 -50 I J5 37 ,5i

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CATCH Filed Oct. 14, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Feb. 25, 1941 CATCH Gedor W. Aldeen, Rockford, Ill., assignor to American Cabinet Hardware Corp., Rockford, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Application October 14, 19328, Serial No. 234,886

13 Claims.

The invention relates generally to catches and 'more' particularly to a catch for the door of a cabinet or cupboard.

The general object of the invention is to pro- 5 vide a novel catch which has a positive locking actionwhen engaged with its strike, but may be easily released manually and passes the strike with a smooth easy action upon closing the door.

It is also an object to provide a novel catch Vhaving a bolt movable by an actuator which con stitutes the sole means for moving the bolt.

A further object is to provide a novel catch vided with a bolt having a rectilinear movement ,and actuated by a pivoted member so related to the strike that in closing the door the pivoted member and strike coact in such a manner as to provide a smooth easy action in swinging the bolt.

Another object is to provide a novel catch all the principal parts of which are adapted to be made of sheet metal so that the catch is relatively inexpensive to manufacture.

Still another object is to provide a catch of the foregoing general character, which may, if desired, be provided with a spring for throwing open the door upon release of the catch, the spring being of a simple form and easily installed.

Figure 1 is a fragmentary front view of la door of a cabinet provided with a catch embodying the features of the invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged horizontal section taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1 and showing the door in its closed position.

Fig. 3 is a section similar to Fig. 2 but showing the catch with its parts in their disengaged position and the door slightly open.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged horizontal section taken on the line I--4 of Fig. 1 and showing the door about to be closed.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view showing various parts of the catch.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken on the line of Fig. 2.

Fig. 7 is a perspective view showing a modified necform of door Vhandle adapted for use in con tion with the catch.

DTO-

Fig. 8 is a section showing another type of door handle adaptable for use with a catch.

Fig..9 is a fragmentary section showing still another type of door handle adapted for use with a catch.

As mentioned above, a catch embodying the features of the invention is adapted for use in connection with the door of a cabinet, cupboard or the like. .For purposes of illustration, a frag.

ment of the cabinet is shown in the drawings, comprising a door 20 and a door frame 2|. As shown herein, the door 20 has a lip 22 extending around its periphery and adapted to abut against the outer face .of the frame 2| when the dooris closed. n

The catch is adapted to'be mounted on the inner face of the door and has an operating member eX- tending through a hole in the door for actuatio-n by manually operable means mounted on the outer face of the door. The catch is adapted to cooperate Wiith a strike 23 mounted on the door frame. In the present instance the strike 23 comprises a small angle plate having one leg secured to the edge surface `of the door frame asbyscrews and the other leg extending parallel to the door. v

The catch is generally of the spring type, that is, of lthe type which automatically locks upon closing the door. A catch embodying the features of the invention comprises generally a bolt engageable with the strike 23 when the door is closed, and an actuator for the bolt which' constitutes the sole means for moving the bolt Whether it bey by the manually operable means, or under the influence of the spring, or in coaction with the strike. 23 upon closing the door. The bolt has a rectilinear movement, thereby effecting a positive locking action, but because of the fact that it is actuated under all circumstances solely by the actuator, it iseasily retracted upon manipulation of the hand operable r means and has a smooth easy action upon closing the door. The caltch is so constructed that its various parts may be made of sheet metal, and a spr'mg may be utilized with the catch for throwing the door open when the bolt is retracted, which spring is attachable when the catch is installed upon vthe door. The bolt actuator is operated by means of a simple push pin extending through the door, necessitating only the provision of a hole therethrough for the passage of the pin and making Athe catch adaptable for use with various types of handles.

As shown in the drawings, the preferred embodiment of the invention comprises a casing', in-

:from the door.

dicated generally at 24,- adapted to be secured on the inner face of the door 20. Slidably mounted within the casing 24 is a bolt 25 and an actuator, indicated generally at 25. The casing 24 is made of sheet metal and comprises a top wall 30, two side walls 3| at right angles lto the top wall 30, and a back wall 32. The casing also has fa front wall 33 which is cut short, as shown in Figs. 2, 3 and 5, to permit the bolt 25 to extend beyond the casing and engage the strike 23. The side walls 3| are extended and bent outwardly, las at 34 (see Figs. 5 and 6), to lie flat against the inner face of the door 2D and be secured thereto as by screws 35. y

The bolt 25 comprises a at strip of metal having its forward or strike engaging end bent at an angle awiay from .the door, as at 35, and thence inwardly .toward the casing, as at 31. I'he bolt actuator 26 comprises a pair of sector-shaped side portions 40 lying parallel to and just inside of the side walls 3| of the casing. The portions 40 are pivotally supported by a pin 4| located adjacent their apex, the pin being in turn supported by the side walls 3| of the casing. The sector-shaped portions 40 are stamped from sheet metal and are integral with a connecting web portion 4|a located at the rear part of their arcuate edges.

The actuating member 26' is associated with the bolt j25 in such a manner as to cause `the bolt to have a rectilinear movement upon pivotal movement of the actuator 25. Preferably the association between the actuator 26 and the bolt is of the rack and pinion type. To this end, the side edges of the bolt are notched, as at 42 (see Figs. 4 and 5), to provide teeth constituting a rack meshing with gear teeth 43 cut in the arcuate edges of the sector-shaped portions 40 of the actuator. Thus upon swinging motion of the actuator 26 the bolt is moved back and forth within the casing, the forward end of the bolt moving sufficiently to pass by the strike 23.

The bolt is supported for such rectilinear movement by a plate, indicated at 44, constituting a closure for the casing 24. The plate is provided with a pair of indented portions 45 providing flat surfaces upon which the bolt may slide. rear end the bolt extends beyond the casing through an aperture provided by cutting the end of the rear wall 32 short, as indicated at 46. The forward end of the bolt is held against the sliding surface 45 by the engagement of the gear teeth 43 on the actuator. When the bolt is in its locking position, as shown in Fig. 2, an outwardly directedv force on the door tends to move the bolt away As will be noted from Fig. 2, the contact of. the bolt with the actuator is substan-` tially in line with .the pivotal axis of the actuator. Thus, with such force on the door, there is no tendency to vswing .the actuator and consequently no tendency to unlock the door. To prevent the bolt from moving .too far in the direction of its locking zposition, the rear end of the bolt is provided withv -a'pair of ears 41 extending laterally beyond the side edges of the bolt -to engage with the rear edges o-f the side walls 3| of the casing. The bolt is thus limited in its forward movement.

To cause the bolt to automatically move tor its locking position, a torsion spring 50 is mounted on the pivot pin 4| for the actuator. One end of the .torsion spring (indicated at 5|) bears against the inner surface of the top wall 3U of the casing, while the other end of the spring is bowed, as at 52, to bear againstthe web portion 4| a of the actuator. .Thus the spring tends to swing the actu- At its l ator in such direction as to move the bolt to its locking position.

One of the prominent features of Ithe invention lies in the provision of an actuator which causes the bolt to be retracted upon closing the doo-r so that the bolt may pass the strike 13. It will be noted in Fig. 4 .that .the forward edges, indicated at 53, of the sector-shaped portions 40 of the actuator will engage the strike 23, upon closing the door, before the bolt can engage the strike. The strike thereupon has .a camming action upon the edges 53 and causes the actuator to swing inwardly of the casing, thereby retracting the bolt. Since Ithe edges 53 of the actuator are relatively long, their angle relative to the strike may be small so that the camming action is effected by a minimum of effort. Thus the bolt will be retracted upon closing the door witha smooth and easy action.

For manual operation of the catch, the actuator is adapted to be swung by means extending throughthe door to the exterior surface thereof. In the present instance such means comprises a push pin 54 bearing against the web portion .4|a of the actuator to the rear side of the pivotal axis thereof so that the actuator will ybe swung in a direction to retract the bolt. In order to provide a direct bearing for the pin 54 against the actuator, the web portion 4|a has an inwardly extending lip 55 curved inwardly between the sector-shaped portions 4i), with a curvature such that the end of the pin 54 bears squarely against the lip 55 throughout the extent of movement of the parts. The bolt is provided with a central longitudinal slot 56 sothat the pin 54 may extend therethrough into contact with the lip 55. The pin-54 'is slidably supported at its inner end by a flanged aperture 51 formed centrally of the closure plate 44. The closure plate44 is preferably held `in place by laterally extending ears 58 corresponding in shape with the ears 34 of the casing. The closure plate 44 is secured in place merely by being interposed and `clamped between the casing andthe rear face of the door by meansof the attaching screws 35.

Another prominent feature of the invention lies inthe fact that the catch may be readily provided with a spring of simple construction for causing the .door to swing open upon retraction of thebolt. To `simplify the installation of sucha spring it is constructedso that it maybe secured in place by the screws 35 which attach the catch to the door. As shown in the drawings, -the spring is of generally U-shaped form having its intermediate or web portion 60 adapted to engageagainst the front face of the strike 23. The arms of the U are .bowed out of the plane of the U, as indicated at 6|, to extend adjacent the side walls 3| -of the casing and toward the attaching screws 3,5. The ends of the spring are looped, as at 62, to t under or be held by the heads of .the attaching screws 35. When the door is open, the spring occupies the position indicated at Figs. k3 and 4. However, upon forcing the door closed, the bowing 5| of the arms of the spring is increased, as shown* in-Fig. 2, since the strike holds the web portion 5G of the spring while the door is forced inwardly. Upon retraction of the bolt, the resiliency of the spring bearing against the strike causes ther door to swing outwardly. The spring is preferably held `under an initial tension or bowing by extending `the ends of Vtheipivot pin `4| to engage ther bowed portions .of the spring, as shownin Figs. 3, 6 and 7.

Since a catch embodying the features of the invention is manually operable by means of a simple push pin, it is adaptable for use with various types of handles. As shown in Figs. 1 to 6, inclusive, the push pin 54 is provided on its outer end with a simple push button 63 secured to the outer end of the pin. The push button 63 is slidably supported by an escutcheon plate 64 which preferably is secured to the front face of the door by the screws 35 utilized for securing the catch to the rear face. Thus tubular nuts 65 secured to the escutcheon plate 64 extend rearwardly through holes drilled in the door for engagement with the screws 35, as shown in Fig. 6.

In Fig. 7 I have shown la modified form of handle for use in connection with the device. As shown in this gure a handle 10 is provided, the upper end of which is preferably secured to the door by one of the screws, indicated at 1I, by which the catch is attached to the rear face. The lower end of the handle 10 may be secured to the door by an ordinary `screw 12 and the lower end of the catch may be secured to the door by a similar screw 13. The push pin, indicated at 14, in this instance is provided with a flange 15 abutting against the inner face of the handle and an outwardly projecting portion 16 extending through the handle. Thus the handle 10 may be grasped and the thumb utilized for operating the push pin 14.

In the forms shown in Figs. 8 and 9, a tilting type of handle is used. Thus in Fig. 8 an escutcheon plate 80 is secured to the front face of `the door by the screws utilized for attaching the casing thereto. The escutcheon plate 80 has a pair of forwardly extending ears 8| pivotally supporting a handle 82 by a pin 83, the portion of the handle 82 adapted to be grasped by the hand, extending downwardly from the pivot. The push pin, indicated at 84, carries on its outer or front end an L-shaped portion 25 slidably mounted on the pin 83 and extending into the upper portion of the handle 82. On pulling the lower portion of the handle 82 outwardly, the L-shaped portion 85 is forced inwardly, causing the push pin to operate the catch. A small compression spring 86 is preferably placed around the push pin 84 to bear between .the escutcheon plate 8!) and the L-shaped portion 85 to cause the push pin 84 to slide outwardly and the handle to assume a vertical position when not in use.

In Fig. 9 I have shown a handle somewhat similarto that shown in Fig, 8, except that it is adapted to operate the push pin veither by pushing or pulling at the top or bottom thereof. As shown in this iigure, the handle, indicated at 9D, extends equally above and below its pivot 9|. The push pin, indicated at 92, has a T-shaped head 93 slidably supported on the pivot pin 9| and pressed outwardly by a compression spring 94. On pushing or pulling either the upper or the lower portion of the handle 90 the push pin S?. will be forced inwardly to operate the catch, and the spring 94 will hold the handle in a vertical position when not in use.

In operation, assuming that the door is closed, as shown in Fig. 2, the push button 63 is pushed inwardly, causing the push pin 54 to swing the actuator 26 against the action of the torsion spring 5B. The gear teeth on the actuator slide the bolt inwardly of the casing so that it may pass the strike 23. As soon as the bolt has cleared the strike 23, the pressure of the door opening spring due to the bowing 6I thereof causes the door to swing open. Upon release of the push button the torsion spring 50 swings the actuator to move the bolt to its'locking position.

Upon closing the door, the edges 53 of the side portions 40 of the actuator rst contact the strike 23. Upon' further inward movement of the door, the strike has a camming action on the edges 53 causing vthe actuator to retract the bolt- As soon Ias the edges 53 in the bolt have passed the strike, the torsion spring 50 causes the actuator to swing and move the bolt to its locking position. Such locking position is determined by contact of the ears 41 on the rear end of the bolt with the casing. Should there be a force tending to open the door when the bolt is in such locking position, the pressure thereby exerted upon the bolt is transmitted to the actuator, but since the point of contact of the actuator and the bolt is directly in line wih the pivotal axis of the actuator, `as shown in Fig. 2, such pressure has no tendency to swing the actuator.

From the foregoing, it will be evident that I have provided a catch adaptable for use in connection with cabinet or cupboard doors, which has a positive locking action because of the rectilinear movement of the bolt, and may be easily operated manually to release it. The catch is of the spring type, that is, one in which the bolt is automatically retracted to permit the door to close and automatically returns to its locking position. By virtue of the fact that the strike contacts the bolt actuator on the relatively long gradually sloping surfaces 53, the parts are easily moved by contact with the strike and the bolt moves back with a smooth easy action. Thus the strike does not contact the bolt to cause retraction thereof, but rather contacts thev actuator, and the latter constitutes the sole means for moving the bolt. The parts of the catch are so constructed that they may be made of sheet metal, thus affording an inexpensive construction- The spring for causing the door to swing open upon retraction of the bolt is of extremely simple construction and may be readily installed. Because the catch is manually operable by a simiple push pin, it is obvious that it is adaptable for use with various types of handles.

I claim as my invention:

1. A catch ofthe character described comprising, in combination, a bolt having a rectilinear movement to and from its locking position, and a pivoted member for moving the bolt, said bolt being moved to and from its locking position solely by said member when the catch is operated by hand, when the bolt is caused to be retracted upon closing the door, or when spring operated.

2. A catch of the character described comprising, in combination, a bolt engageable with a strike and having a rectilinear movement to and from its locking position, a pivoted member for actuating said bolt in both directions, a manually operable pin for swinging said member to retract the bolt, and a torsion spring for swinging said member to move the bolt to its locking position, saidl pivoted member also being engageable by the strike for swinging it to retract the bolt.

3. A catch comprising, in combination, a bolt, a pivoted member for actuating the bolt, and a pin for swinging the pivoted member, said member being made of sheet metal and having a pair of spaced sector-shaped portions pivoted adjacent their apex, and a web portion connecting the sector-shaped portions, said web portion being out away to provide a lip curved to 'bear squarely against the end of th-e pin throughout the movement of the parts.

4. A catch comprising, in combination, abolt comprising a ilat stripl `of sheet metal,V a pivoted member for actuating the bolt comprising a pair of spaced sector-shaped portions pivoted adjacent their apex, and a web portion connecting one' teeth' in said bolt.

6. A catch comprising, in combination, a casing, a bolt slidable in th-e casing, one end of the casing having anfopening through which the bolt extends and serving as a guide for the adjacent end of the bolt, and a member pivotally supported in the casing for actuating the bolt, said Amember coacting with the casing in guiding the other end of the bolt.

7. A catch comprising, in combination, a casing, a bolt mounted in said casing and extending therefrom for engaging a strike, means for securing the casing to a door, and a spring secured by said means and engageable with said strike for opening the door when the bolt is retracted.

8. A catch comprising, in combination, a casing adapted to be secured to a door by screws, a, bolt mounted in said casing and extending therefrom for engaging one side of a strike, and a Wire spring having a U-shape with the arms of the U bowed out of the plane of the U and held by said screws, the intermediate portion of the U being positioned to engage the other side of the strike, the spring being compressed by closing the door and thereby swinging the door open when the bolt is retracted. l

9. A catch of the character described comprising, in combination, a bolt adapted to engage a strike When in its locked position, and means for actuating said bolt in both directions, said means ybeing operable manually and by Contact With the strike upon closing the door for moving the bolt in one directionand being spring actuated for moving the bolt in the other direction.

10. A catch of the character described comprising, in combination, a bolt adapted to engage a strike when in its locked position, an actuator for moving the bolt to and from its locked position, said actuator being operable in one direction by contact with the strike upon closing the door, manually operable means for moving said actuator in the same direction, and a spring bearing against said actuator for moving it in the opposite direction.

11. A catch comprising, in combination, a casing adapted to be secured to the inner surface of a door, a bolt slidably mounted in the casing par-4 allel to and adjacent said inner surface and having a flat portion, a member mounted in saidy casing and having operating contact with the bolt at the respective side edges of said flat portion, and a pin for operating said member adapted to extend through the door and bearing.

against said member intermediate said side edges, said bolt having a slot through which said pin extends.

12. For a door having a catch adapted to en gage a strike and adapted to 'be secured to the door by screws passing through a pair of spaced ears, a device for opening the door when the catch is released comprising a Wire spring bent generally into the shape of a U with the inter- `301.1. mediate portion of the U adapted to engage'the" front face of the strike when the door is closed,

each arm of the U being reversely bowed out of the plane of the U to exert a torsional force tending to open the door, the endsv of the arms being formed to iit around and to be held in place by the screws for securing the catch to the door.

13. For a door having a catch adapted to engage a strike and adapted to be 'secured to the door by screws passing through a pair of spaced ears, a device for opening the door when the catch is released comprising a Wirespring bent generally into the shape of a U with the intermediate portion of the U adapted to engage the front face of the strike when the door is closed, each arm having its free end xedly secured by the one of the screws for securing the catch to the door, and each arm being shaped to exert a torsional force tending to open the door.

, GEDOR W. -ALDEEN 

